Two Jaish militants killed in encounter in Jammu and Kashmir’s Baramulla
Security forces have killed 16 militants in nine encounters in September taking the overall number of slain militants in Jammu and Kashmir to 154 this year. Two Jaish militants were killed in Baramulla on Friday
Two militants, aiming to target an ongoing army recruitment rally under the Agniveer scheme, were killed in a gunfight with security forces in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district on Friday, police officials said.
As the month ends, the security forces have killed 16 militants in nine different gunfights in September taking the overall number of slain militants in different anti-militancy operations to 154 this year.
The police officials said that a joint party of police, Army’s 29 Rashtriya Rifles and 2nd Battalion of Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) launched a cordon and search after getting specific information regarding the movement of militants at the Yadipora area of Pattan during the night hours.
“During searches, the terrorists hiding in a house fired upon the search party, which was retaliated triggering off an encounter,” said senior superintendent of police, Baramulla, Rayees Bhat.
The police said that the encounter continued for eight hours. “Two terrorists were killed in morning hours and their identity is being ascertained,” he said.
Though the identity of the militants is yet to be ascertained, the police said they were locals.
“Both the local militants were linked to proscribed terror outfit JeM. Search operation in progress. Further details shall follow,” said the additional director general of police, Kashmir, Vijay Kumar in a tweet on its police handle.
Arms and ammunition have been recovered from the retrieved bodies. “An AK Rifle, a pistol and other war-like stores were recovered,” the Chinar Corps said in a tweet.
Police said that the rifle make was AKS 74u along with its three magazines. “It is a new version of Ak 47 which is often carried by foreign terrorists. It is called a short AK,” Bhat said.
Police officials said that their intelligence reports revealed that the said militants had been given a task to attack the ongoing army recruitment rally (Agniveer) in Baramulla.
“Their mission was to derail this recruitment rally to disturb the youth who were eager to join the mainstream. However, forces have been successful in repulsing their nefarious plan,” said the SSP.
“Our request to youth is not to take the path of violence,” he said.
The SSP said that a heightened alert was already in force in Baramulla. “A heightened security and intelligence grid is in place. That is why we achieved this success,” he said.
The police said that the site of the encounter has been sanitised but requested the public to avoid going in droves near the encounter site. “Report any suspicious object to the police immediately,” he said.
Police sources said that as many as 16 militants have been killed in Kashmir this month, eight of them in south Kashmir, six in north Kashmir and two in Srinagar. As many as 154 militants have been killed in Kashmir this year of which 115 were locals while the rest were foreigners.
Meanwhile, an encounter had also erupted in south Kashmir’s Shopian district during the night. A police official of Shopian said that the operation ended without any result.
Huge quantity of arms and ammunition were recovered in Bandipora.
J&K police on Friday said that the security forces recovered a huge quantity of arms and ammunition in north Kashmir’s Bandipora.
“Bandipora police and army recovered huge arms & ammunition including 7 AK-47 rifles, 2 pistols, 21 AK magazines, 1,190 rounds, 132 pistol rounds, 13 grenades & other incriminating materials in Nowshehra Nard, Gurez area of Bandipora. Case registered,” the Kashmir Police said in a tweet.